Spinning spindle



E. H. ERHARD SPINNING SPINDLE Filed Sept. 29, 1954 'ill 'h M INVENTOR.

M/LE h! EEHA ED. BY M W W/ TNESS.

CL/NTON 5. O5U 4 TTORNEY.

Patented Jan. 21, 1936 PATENT OFFICE 2,928,537 SPINNING SPINDLE Emile H.Erhard, Dedham, Mass, assignor to Draper Corporation, Hopedale, Mass.,at corporation of Maine Application September 29, 1934, Serial No.746,198

2 Claims.

The present invention pertains to spinning spindles of the type commonlyused on ring spinning frames, twister frames and the like.

Spindles of the type mentioned are usually comprised of a bobbinreceiving spindle blade to which a driving whorl is attached, a base,and a bearing such as a bolster in which the spindle blade revolves.Present day requirements of increased production and high efiiciencycall for higher spindle speeds that have been practicable heretofore.Such higher speeds have particularly aggravated the lubrication problem.It is noted especially that while certain types of prior spindles can beadequately lubricated at high speeds, such spindles are so constructedthat oil in. varying quantities escapes from the base and accumulates onadjacent parts of the spinning frame. The undesirable consequences ofsuch an accumulation of oil are of sufficient magnitude that theprevention thereof is of major importance to the industry.

Accordingly, the principal object of the present invention is toprovide, in a spindle of the type above mentioned, means for adequatelylubricating the spindle blade and its bearing, and means for entirelypreventing the escape of oil from the spindle while still permittingvisual inspection of the oil supply.

In accomplishing the aforementioned object I have utilized a spindlebase having an oil reservoir contained therein, and a bearing, such as abolster, which extends into the interior of the whorl. The bearing abovethe oil level is lubricated by reason of the oil feeding upwardly of thespindle blade or the bolster, this phenomena being well-known in theart. The oil thus fed upwardly overflows and runs down the inside of thewhorl, from whence it is thrown off by centrifugal force. I havediscovered that the oil is thrown from the whorl with such velocity thatupon striking a vertical surface it will become vaporized, and theresulting oil vapor cannot be prevented from passing outside the spindleand condensing on any adjacent objects.-

I have-further discovered that the condensation of oil vapor, asaforesaid, is responsible for accumulations of oil around what appearsto be an oil-tight spindle base.

The present invention seeks to prevent acculations of oil as aforesaid,by providing for collecting the oil thrown from the whorl, in suchmanner as to prevent its being vaporized. To this end, I provide anoil-collecting member which has a downwardly and outwardly inclinedinterior surface surrounding the lower'edge of the whorl and leading tothe interior of the oil reservoir. I find that the inclined surface willreceive and collect the oil, virtually eliminating the vaporization ofthe latter which characterizes prior constructions.

A still further object is to provide a novel means whereby the oil levelin an enclosed spindle base may be determined without dismantling thespindle and without permitting the escape of oil vapor therefrom.

Other objects will be hereinafter more specifically enumerated, or willbecome apparent as the description proceeds.

The preferred embodiment of my invention is illustrated on theaccompanying drawing, of which:

Fig. 1 is a View partly in elevation and partly in section, of the saidembodiment;

Fig. 2 is a view in elevation of the spindle of Fig. 1;

Figs. 3 and 4 are respectively, a plan and an 1 elevation of the oilcollecting member of Fig. l.

The spindle shown on the drawing includes a spindle blade I of usualconstruction, a base 2 attached to a spindle rail 3, a bearing in theform of a bolster 6 within the base, a whorl 5 fixed to the spindleblade above the base, and a conve-ntional centrifugal clutch (i. Thespindle blade bears at its lower end in the bolster and is revolvedwithin the latter by the usual tape or band (not shown) which engagesthe pulley surface i on the whorl.

The lower face of the whorl is recessed, as is clearly shown, and thetubular'portion 8 of the base extends upwardly into such recess. In thepresent construction, the bolster likewise extends upwardly into therecess in the whorl, the top of the bolster being preferably flush withthe top of the portion 8 of the base. The base is oil tight, preferablybeing cast of metal in one piece. An annular, open-topped oil reservoir9 is formed as a part of the base, the reservoir being constituted by acylindrical wall Ii! and a floor I I both co-axial with the spindleblade and bolster.

The oil reservoir is filled with lubricating oil substantially to thelevel indicated on Fig. 1, and this oil enters the chamber in which thebolster is located, through oil leads I2 which extend from the bottom ofthe reservoir to the bolster. Further oil leads i3 extend through thewalls of the bolster to permit the oil to reach the spindle blade. Whilethe oil level in the reservoir is well below the top of the bolster andbase, it is found that, particularly at higher spindle speeds, the oilwill feed upwardly of the spindle blade and overflow therefrom. Thecylindrical wall H on the interior of the whorl serves as anoildirecting surface for directing the oil downwardly, exteriorly of thebase.

An annular groove may be formed in the lower face of the whorl, thusdividing the same into an inner sleeve l5 and an outer skirt It. It willbe noted that the sleeve I5 is cylindrical in form and that its diameteris only sufficiently greater than the diameter of the portion 8 of thebase to provide clearance thereover. Since the diameter of the sleeve isthus as small as it can be made, oil thrown from the lower edge of thesleeve will be thrown at the minimum velocity. The oil flowing down thewall I4 is thrown outwardly from the lower edge of the sleeve, and

' my invention provides a member for collecting this oil and returningit to the interior of the base.

The oil-collecting member is indicated generally at ll, and iscomprised, in the present embodiment, of a lower cylindrical portion l8and an upper portion is. The interior surface of the upper portion iscontinuous and is a surface of revolution which inclines downwardly andoutwardly away from the axis of the spindle at an angle of approximately45 degrees to the axis of the spindle. It will be apparent that the oilthrown from the sleeve it, having a more or less parabolic path, will bemoving downwardly and outwardly away from the spindle when it strikesthe portion it, the angle of the latter being calculated to coincide asclosely as possible with the direction of movement of the thrown oil.The particular surface shown is of frusto-conical shape, and the upperedge thereof is positioned within the aforesaid groove, while the loweredge thereof is integral with the cylindrical portion E8. The member ll,if formed separately from the base, is preferably firmly fixed to thebase, as by being force-fitted into the oil reservoir.

It is found that when the drops of oil thrown from the lower edge of thewhorl are caused to strike against an inclined surface they are notbroken up, or vaporized, but merely cling to and run down such surface.Thus, the inclined surface truly constitutes means for collecting theoil which, in prior art devices, would escape from the spindle eitherbecause its exodus is unimpeded or because it is first vaporized andthen allowed to escape as oil vapor. In the present construction theinclined surface is integrally joined with the internal surface of thecylindrical portion I8. Since this cylindrical portion is positionedinside the base, i. e., inside the oil reservoir the collected oil isthereby returned to the interior of the oil reservoir.

The oil-collecting member above described serves to enclose the spacebetween the opentopped oil reservoir and the whorl, thus obscuring theoil supply from view. There is shown on the drawing a novel means forpermitting the inspection of the oil in the reservoir. Such means iscomprised of an open-ended tube 20, which may be of cylindricalcross-section, extending from the outside of the oil collecting memberdownwardly into the oil reservoir. The tube terminates at its lower endwell below the surface of the oil in the reservoir.

Thus, the tube is sealed against the exit therethrough of any oil vaporwhich may be present within the base. While this tube is desirable,obviously, it is not essential and may be omitted.

Having fully disclosed the preferred embodiment of my invention, Iclaim:

1. The combination of a spinning spindle having an oil-containing base,a bolster, a whorl, and a circumferentially extending oil reservoir insaid base, said spindle being of the type wherein oil supplied to saidbolster flows downwardly interiorly of said whorl exteriorly of saidbase and is thrown from the lower edge of the former by centrifugalforce, with an oil-collecting member for collecting the oil thrown asaforesaid, said member completely enclosing the space between said whorland said oil reservoir, and an openended tube extending from the outsideof said member downwardly into the oil reservoir to a point below thesurface of the oil supply in the reservoir.

2. The combination of a spinning spindle having an oil-containing base,a bolster, a whorl, and a circumferentially extending oil reservoir insaid base, with an oil-throwing flange depending from said whorl andextending into said oil reser voir, an oil-collecting member enclosingthe space between said whorl and said reservoir, and an open-ended tubeextending from the outside of said member through the latter anddownwardly into said oil reservoir thereby rendering the oil level insaid reservoir visible from the outside of the latter, the lower end ofsaid tube terminating in said reservoir below the said oil level tothereby provide a seal against the exit of oil vapor through the tube.

EMILE H. ERHARD.

